Are You Overlooking A High-Impact Social Media Shopping Tool?

You’ve probably got dozens, if not hundreds, of friends on social media. But did you realize that social media, itself, is your friend, too? According to new research from Experian Marketing Services, retail websites now get more than 7 percent of their traffic from social media. The big leaders are Pinterest, Facebook and YouTube.

Social Media as a Product Discovery Platform According to Bill Tancer, general manager of global research at Experian:

"While search still dominates, social media is becoming a significant source of traffic across the Internet as consumers increasingly use sites like Facebook, Pinterest or YouTube more as discovery platforms. Many of today's marketers are leveraging the power of social communities to increase customer engagement and expand their brand's reach. For retailers, all eyes are on Pinterest."

How well are you using social media to expand your customer base? You’ve probably covered the basics with a Facebook page and Pinterest boards, and maybe you’ve got YouTube videos to demonstrate your products. But so do all your competitors. It’s standard marketing strategy these days.

So how can you step up your game?

Helping Buyers Celebrate Their Purchases Start by thinking a little more about how your buyer’s journey has changed in the past five years or so. A potential customer may see your product in a promoted post on Facebook, or in a friend’s post. A few days later, she might be on Pinterest and decide to do a search for your product. Hopefully, you’ve got those bases covered.

By now, she’s really interested, and she stops into your store. She decides to make a purchase, and she really loves it. She thinks about her friend on Facebook who inspired the idea. Your new customer might want to let her friend know what she bought, or that she really likes your store. Why not give her the tools to do that right in your store, immediately after the purchase? flexReceipts makes it possible.

flexReceipts enables enriched digital receipts so that before she even leaves the store, she gets an electronic receipt in her inbox. As she looks it over, she sees the familiar Facebook button. Just for fun, she decides to post a quick shot of her purchase. To the right, a look at what her friends see.

It’s only taken a few seconds to let her friend know she loves her new purchase. She’s gotten the enjoyment of connecting with her friend. Her friend’s friends see the post, too. You’ve enabled that simple connection, and multiplied its impact hundreds of times through the power of social media networks.

That’s a lot of good will, and a lot of marketing impact. Gotta love that.